Team India will lock horns with arch-rivals Pakistan in the much-anticipated T20 World Cup fixture at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Sunday, October 23. It will be a cracker of a contest infront of a packed 90000 MCG crowd.
This game will bear a massive significance for India after their lost the opening game against the same opponents in the last edition of the T20 World Cup. The Men in Blue have a new captain (at the ICC level anyway), a new head coach, a new mind coach and a new T20 batting ideology.
The team look well-balanced with Hardik Pandya in excellent form with both bat and ball. Suryakumar Yadav, who has been India’s leading run-scorer in T20Is this year, will hope to keep his juggernaut going against a star-studded Pakistan attack.
It wasn't a match day but hundreds of Indian fans turned up to watch #TeamIndia nets today at the MCG. 🇮🇳🥁👏#T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/z3ZiICSHL8
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 22, 2022
Babar Azam and Co. seem slightly more settled. They have a familiarly ferocious bowling line up. In Babar and Mohammad Rizwan, they even have an opening pair that’s a throwback to many solid Indian teams that played percentage cricket.
Until of course you get to their middle-order, which serves as an instant reminder that while India’s love for chaos may be new-found, for Pakistan it is a way of life.
Match Details
Match: India vs Pakistan, Match 16, Super 12, ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022
Date and Time: October 23 2022, Sunday, 01:30 pm IST
Venue: Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
Pitch Report
With rain beating down Melbourne since the last few days, it is expected to be a slow surface. The ball is likely to hold up before it arrives to the batters and teams would like to bowl first on this wicket.
Weather Forecast
It must be said that it has improved in the last few days given the grim prediction a week out. But given that rain is expected around match start time, delays are likely.
IND vs PAK – Predicted Playing XIs
India (IND): Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin/Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh
Pakistan (PAK): Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Shan Masood, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Shah Afridi
Live Streaming Details and telecast
TV: Star Sports Network
Live Streaming: Disney+ HotStar
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